A Black Christmas
by SKINNYxLOVE
Summary: Christmas with the Black cousins. Mayhem is sure to occur. What happens when Bellatrix is left in charge, but wants to entertain her boyfriend instead? Told through Andromeda's point of view. Rated "T" for some swearing and mention of sex.


_Author's note:_ I changed the ages of the characters for this story - only slightly, though. Bellatrix is 15, Andromeda is 13 and Narcissa is 11. Sirius is 8 and Regulus is 6. Enjoy. R&R, please!

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing. Obv., or else I wouldn't be writing _fan_fiction!

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**A Black Christmas**

There was a loud screech and then the sound of giggles commenced. Andromeda Black looked up from the book that she was reading, listening to the loud footfalls of running children. She glanced briefly to her side, where her older sister was straddling her boyfriend on the couch, her body pushed up against his. She was holding the sides of her face with her hands, her lips embedded into his. Andromeda rolled her eyes and then nearly jumped as the door to the nursery (converted to accommodate the Black sisters' older ages) slammed open. It hit the wall with a loud bang and in the threshold stood two little boys, cousins of the Black sisters.

"What the—" Bellatrix Black said as she let go of Rodolphus Lestrange's face and climbed off of him. She stood with her one hand on her hip, the other one hanging down her side. She looked irritated to be interrupted. "What are you doing? You brats are being too loud!"

"Cissy won't show us any magic!" the youngest piped up, grinning.

"So, we stole her wand to try it ourselves!" the oldest finished, pulling the wand from out from behind his back to show Andromeda and Bellatrix. He also grinned.

The two sisters exchanged looks and then Bellatrix sighed and rolled her eyes. Rodolphus stood up and purred something in Bella's ear, causing her to laugh lowly and give him a seductive look. Andromeda watched them before turning her attention back to the two boys. She heard some loud pounding coming from the hallway. Moments later, Narcissa Black appeared behind the boys. The boys laughed and ran into the room. Narcissa looked passed peeved – she was flaming mad. She entered the room and looked desperately from Bellatrix, who looked very annoyed, to Andromeda, who looked perplexed. The boys ran to Andromeda, hiding behind her and peeked out to the side.

"Andy," Cissy said, her blue eyes pleading. She looked tired. Andy knew what Cissy wanted her older sister to do, but Andy was slightly assumed by this situation. Ever since she'd been in Hogwarts with her older sisters, Cissy had never been without her wand. She sometimes acted better at magic than Bellatrix and Andromeda; so now she deserved some of her own medicine.

Andy looked over at Bellatrix, who was staring back. Rodolphus looked like he wanted to pounce on Bellatrix. Bellatrix shook her head slightly, a smirk on her face. Andy smiled back at her older sister. Andy turned around to face the boys, who were still grinning. Sirius, the older boy, was grasping the wand like his life depended on it. Which, when he was older and could use magic, it would. She held out her hand and gave Sirius a warning look. He frowned, but handed the wand over. Andy snatched the wand from him, pretending to upset with him (though Sirius couldn't tell) and began to walk slowly over to Cissy.

"You know, boys," she began, glancing at them over her shoulder, "I'm a little disappointed in you. Stealing your cousin's wand and then… making it _so_ easy for her to get back." She spun around now, grinning. "I would have expected you to make her work harder to get it back." She was halfway to Cissy now. The boys continued to stare at her as she walked backward. Then, Sirius grinned and grabbed his brother's hand. They took off toward Andy and grabbed the wand from her hand as she held it down for them to take. She laughed and turned around. The boys narrowly missed Cissy as she went for them. They escaped through the door, laughing. Andy heard them run down the hallway, teasing Cissy.

Cissy spun around, glaring at Andy. "I hate you!" she yelled, tears forming in her eyes. She turned to Bellatrix, who was laughing at her sister's expense. "Bella! Make them give it back! This is not fair; why are you two so mean to me?" The tears began to fall down her cheeks. She continued to pout, folding her arms over her chest.

Andy was about to reply, but then she heard the boys running down the stairs. She glanced over at Bella, finding it hard to not notice how Rodolphus was staring at her older sister. He was standing behind her, one hand on Bella's hip and Andy didn't want to think about the other one that she couldn't see. He was taller than Bella was and Andy kept watching as he stared down her low-cut dress that pushed her breasts up and almost out of the dress.

"You're in charge," Andy said, looking back at Bella. "Go after them!" The adults were downstairs, enjoying too much alcohol. They rarely liked to be interrupted by the children, which is why they'd sent them up to the nursery to spend the rest of the night, leaving Bella in charge.

Bella shook her head, black hair falling over her shoulders. "No way!" she challenged. "You're the one who gave them back the wand—"

"It was your idea!" Andy shot back, cutting her sister off, her voice rising. It was always like this with Bella: she would be on your side one minute and then next, you were on your own. Andy swore up and down that she had a mood disorder.

Bella raised an eyebrow. "You can't prove anything," she said coldly. She grasped Rodolphus's hand. "Go get them and keep them upstairs. All four of you are to stay in this room, understood? No roaming about up here." With that, she headed out of the nursery, Rodolphus in tow. Andy knew not to argue with her sister, whose temper usually ran on empty, but she was feeling a little deceived by Bella.

"Where are you going?" Andy called out as Bella walked through the door.

There was no answer. Andy looked back at Cissy, whose crying seemed to have ceased. Cissy stalked over to the couch and plopped down. She glared at Andy. Andy rolled her eyes at her sister and then sighed. She walked swiftly out of the room, down the hall and to the stairs. She could hear Sirius and Regulus at the bottom of the stairs, whispering. Andy slowly made her way down the stairs, holding up her dress as she descended the stairs. The boys, too smart for their own good, heard someone approaching them from behind and scattered from the stairs, turning around as they reached the foyer. Andy groaned.

"Boys!" she whispered, standing on the stairs. She heard laughter erupt from dining room. "We have to be _really_ quiet. Come on with me." Andy held out her hands, but the boys regarded her. Sirius clutched the wand in his hand. He tilted his head to the side, studying his older cousin. Andy gave him a pleading look, glancing down the hallways as she heard another bout of laughter coming from the dining room. She wasn't scared of the adults, but during family gatherings (especially Christmas, which they were currently celebrating), they all liked to drink after the meal. No matter if they were here, where the three Black sisters lived, or at the House of Black, where Sirius and Regulus lived, they ushered the children into some room and told them to occupy themselves when they discussed "adult matters". Andy had once stumbled across one of these "discussions", but it was nothing more than lots of drinking, talking dirty and laughing at things that weren't all that funny. Sometimes, the "discussions" would tone down and get into politics or something of that boring nature, but normally it was lively and the adults simply wanted the children out of their hair. Andy didn't want the boys to interrupt or be too loud because she didn't know how the adults would react.

"Siri," she begged, "please. I won't make you give Cissy back the wand. I promise."

Sirius regarded her a moment longer. "Cross your heart and hope to die?" he asked.

"Yes; cross my heart and hope to die," she repeated, drawing an "x" over her heart. Sirius approached her, Regulus following behind his older brother. Andy watched Sirius come toward her slowly, letting out her breath. When Sirius reached Andy, he held up his hand, his pinky the only finger that was up. Andy stared at him, exasperated.

"I'm already risking my life!" she argued jokingly, but Sirius did not back down. Finally, Andy gave in: she swooped her pinky down to his, wrapping her pinky around his. Sirius grinned at her, then he bounded up the stairs. Regulus pushed passed Andy and chased after his brother. Andy quickly went up the stairs, taking them two at a time. When she reached the top of the stairs, she was greeted by yelling.

"Get… _OUT_!" Bellatrix screamed from her room at the end of the hallway. Sirius and Regulus came running from the room. A black, stiletto-heeled shoe came flying through the door, hitting the wall with such force that a picture frame hanging up on the wall fell to the ground with a crash.

Andy was at the nursery now and she pointed into the room as the boys came to a halt in front of her. "Stay in there," she told them firmly, giving them another warning look. The boys dashed into the room and Andy closed the door, assuming that Bella had some words for her. She was right. She looked down the hallway, seeing her sister gliding toward her, holding her other shoe in her hand.

"Andromeda!" Bella said sternly. She reached her sisters and stared hard at her. "What did I tell you? You're supposed to keep those _children_ in the nursery. How hard is that? I don't want them in my room!"

Andy studied her sister. Her hair was a mess and her make-up was smudged. Then she realized why Bella was so upset. She usually was mad when someone entered her room without asking or if she didn't want to talk to that particular person, but she was beyond angry this time. Though, she was handling her temper very well, but it was the look on her face that gave her away.

"Oh my… are you… with Rod…?" Andy stammered, hoping that it was just an intense make-out session.

Bella stepped back from her sister, giving her an assumed look. She smirked and was about to answer Andy when the door opened. Sirius's head poked out and when he saw Bella standing there, he grinned. He opened the door more and stepped out into the hallway.

"What were you doing with that guy, Bells?" Sirius asked.

Bella shot him a dirty look. "Firstly, don't ever call me 'Bells' again," she warned. "Secondly, if you come back into my room without permission, you probably won't live long enough to figure it out."

Sirius was about to say something else, but Andy stepped in front of him. She put her hands behind her back and pushed Sirius back into the nursery. She gave her sister a reassuring smile. "It won't happen again, Bella," Andy assured her sister. Bella nodded and then turned around, dashing quickly down the hall, avoiding the broken glass, and into her bedroom. When she reached the door, she looked over at Andy and winked. Despite herself, Andy laughed and then eased herself into the nursery. She closed the door and then leaned against it, looking over at Cissy. She seemed a little happier.

Cissy looked over at Andy and raised her hand, which held on tightly to her wand. The boys were sitting in chairs at a table in the corner, looking very unhappy. "I rioted," she explained. "There was anarchy and the captain abandoned his ship… so I rioted. And I was successful." She grinned. Then her face fell and she jumped up, pointing her wand at the two boys. "I told them if they left those seats, I would hex them."

Andy smiled and laughed, finding it funny that the boys actually believed Cissy would harm them. She thought of telling the boys that they weren't allowed to practice magic outside of Hogwarts, unless they were of a certain age, but then she decided against it. She walked over to the couch and sat down, suddenly feeling very tired. Cissy resumed her seat next to Andy.

"I could fall asleep right now," Andy murmured to her sister, resting her head on the back of the couch and rolling it to the side look at Cissy.

"Well, I'm sure the adults won't be going home tonight," Cissy said. "So, we're going to be watching these buggers all night. I hope they crash soon." She looked around the room. "Where did Bella go?"

Andy thought about her sister, smirking and winking. "Oh, she went to bed," she said. "Rodolphus had to go and she was tired, so... she went to bed." It wasn't a complete lie; Bella did go to bed… only, not alone. Cissy nodded, accepting this excuse. Andy stood up from the couch. "I'll be right back. I'm going to get into pajamas." Once again, Cissy nodded.

Andy exited the room and took a few steps to her bedroom. She opened her door and stepped into the room. Andy quickly fished out her pajamas from their draw and discarded the clothes she was wearing on the floor. As Andy was changing into the nightdress, she heard a loud bang. Instantly, there was ruckus. She heard Sirius and Regulus laughing again and Cissy yelling at them. She quickly left her room and stepped into the hallway to find Cissy chasing the boys down to the opposite end of the hallway. Regulus was ahead of both Cissy and Sirius and he had Cissy's wand in his hand. He ran down to Bella's door and pushed it open.

"Shit," Andy mumbled under her breath, scurrying down the hallway. She watched as Sirius and Cissy followed Regulus into the room. Then she heard Bella yelling and Cissy ran out of the room, Sirius on her heels. Regulus did not come out right away. When he did come out of the room, Bella (still with clothes on, though her dress was a little rumpled) was dragging him by the ear. Andy winced, knowing that she was in for it. Bella marched passed Cissy, who was blushing and avoiding her sister's glare, and brought Regulus down to Andy. She was grasping Cissy's wand on her hand.

Regulus was crying and asking her to stop, saying that she was hurting him. When Bella reached Andy, she pinched and twisted Regulus's ear, staring hard at Andy. The six-year-old gasped in pain and then began to bawl. Bella continued with his torture for a little while longer, giving Andy a sadistic smile, before finally letting of Regulus and pushing him away from her, causing his head to hit the wall. He cried even louder now and turned away from the older girls and retreated back to Cissy, holding out his arms. Cissy bent down and picked up him, kissing his ear and the spot on his head that had hit the wall. He continued to shriek in pain. Andy decided to show no emotion, simply because she did not want to feed the fire that Bella was about to start.

"Happy?" Bella asked Andy, looking as if she could seriously harm her sister also. "Because I sure as hell am not. How hard is it to keep an eight-year-old and a six-year-old in _one_ room? Especially when there are two older people in the room. _How hard is it?!_" She was screaming now, extremely pissed off.

"Bella, I… I'm really sorry," Andy stammered, looking away from her sister. "I—"

But Rodolphus cut her off, as he excited Bella's room. "Bella," he called out as he walked toward his girlfriend. Bella spun around to face him. He reached her. He cupped the side of her face with his hand, bent down and kissed her gently on the mouth. "I have to go. I'm sorry." He kissed her forehead, then stepped around her and headed for the stairs.

Bella watched him walk away for a second before twisting her face into a darker glare, directed at Andy. "Thank you, very much!" she hollered. "Are you happy _now_? You idiots… ugh! Rod, wait!" Bella pushed passed Andy, knocking her off to the side. She ran down the stairs, calling to her boyfriend.

Andy looked down at Cissy, who seemed to have gotten Regulus to calm down. Sirius was leaning against the wall, looking down at the floor. Andy began to make her way down to her sister and cousins. Cissy gave Andy an apologetic look. Andy smiled half-heartedly back and walked up to Sirius. She squatted down in front of him and peered up at him. Sirius stared back sadly.

"What's wrong, little cousin?" she asked.

Sirius shrugged. The he glanced up at Regulus in Cissy's arms. He leaned toward Andy, bringing his mouth to her ear. "I feel bad that I got Regulus in trouble with Bella," he whispered, cupping his hand around his mouth and Andy's ear. "But don't tell him I said that!" He leaned back against the wall, blushing slightly. Andy smiled and leaned in to kiss his cheek. She then stood up and reached down to take Sirius's hand. He took Andy's hand gladly.

"Why don't we get you boys in bed?" she asked, looking from Sirius to Regulus. "Cissy and I are going to have to calm Bella down. And it's probably best if you guys are sleeping."

Regulus nodded and then yawned. He rested his head on Cissy's shoulder and together, all four cousins walked down the hall to the guestrooms.

It took about a half hour for Sirius and Regulus to fall asleep. They would not allow Andy or Cissy to leave them until they did so. The sisters crept quietly out of the guestroom and back down to the nursery. They peeked in, but didn't see Bella. Andy walked softly down to her room, but the door was still open. She frowned and met Cissy in the nursery.

"I don't know where she is," Andy said as she collapsed on the chair she had occupied some hours ago. She picked up the book she had been reading and buried her nose in it, soaking up all of the words. Just as she was really zoning out into the book, Andy heard someone enter the room. When she looked up, she saw Bella. Bella made her way toward Cissy, holding out her hand. Cissy grinned and grabbed the wand from Bella's grasp. She put it on her lap and looked up at Bella.

"Thank you," she said, still smiling.

Bella nodded and then took a spot on the couch next to Cissy. She sighed – almost happily. "Well," she said, "that was a fun night."

Andy stared at her sister, confused. Bella looked at Andy. She grinned. Andy was getting a headache from going on this emotional roller coaster with her older sister. It happened everyday, but during the holidays, it was always worse. She patted the spot next to her on the couch. "Come sit with me," she told Andy.

Andy regarded her sister for a moment before getting up and making her way toward the couch. She sat down next to Bella, book still in hand. Bella moved a smudge closer to Andy, bringing her mouth to Andy's ear. She giggled before she began to talk.

"We did it," she said triumphantly, sounding drunk. She laughed some more and then moved her head away from Andy's ear. She picked up a piece of curly hair and began to twirl it. "When?" Andy asked, not sure what to say.

"Just now," Bella said as she continued to twirl her hair around her finger. She was still smiling. Cissy was watching them; Andy knew she wanted to know what they were talking about.

Andy looked at Bella in surprise. "Where?" she trudged on, now wanting the details. Well, some details.

Bella looked up and laughed. "In the foyer," she explained. "It was kind of fun, actually. Really exciting because the adults weren't that far away and someone could have walked in on us…." She broke off here, laughing harder. "They had no idea! Merlin, it was thrilling!"

Andy smiled. "Was it your first time?" She looked down as she said this, not really wanting to know the answer.

Bella's laughing ceased quickly. "Andy, don't jest. Of course it wasn't! If it was, I wouldn't have done it in the foyer." Andy looked up into her sister's eyes. She wanted to ask so much more, but she knew it save it for later. Or maybe for never. She wanted to badly for her sister to open up to her. Andy looked up to Bella, despite her constant battle of maintaining a proper mood. Bella smiled at her sister, then glanced down in Andy's lap. "What book do you have tonight?"

Andy looked down at the book in her lap, too. She clutched the book. "Do you remember when Mummy would read us that one story about the wizard and the frog?" she asked. Bella nodded. Cissy scooted closer to them, putting her head on Bella's shoulder. "Well, I found it the other day in the chest. I hadn't read it in a while – years, actually – so I decided to."

Bella smiled. She seemed to think before speaking. "Read it out loud," she said. She yawned and rested her head on top of Cissy's, whose eyes were now closed. "From the beginning. I think I've forgotten how it starts."

Andy nodded. She opened the book to the first page and the words from the page spilled from her mouth. She felt a hand trying to grasp her own. She stopped reading and looked down to see Bella's manicured fingers searched for Andy's hand. Andy took her sister's hand, squeezed it and then resumed reading, still holding onto Bella's hand. This was an apology for her behavior, Andy knew, but also a start to them having a different relationship.

Andy had been reading for about ten minutes when she heard a soft voice call her name. She looked up at her sisters, thinking it was one of them, but they were looking at the door. Andy turned attention to the door also. Sirius and Regulus stood in the doorway. Regulus was rubbing his eyes.

"Andy," Sirius said again, nervously looking at Bella. "Regulus had a bad dream. He's scared to be in the room; he said it gave him shivers. Can we sleep in here?"

Andy glanced at Bella, but her sister provided no answers this time. Andy looked back at Sirius. "Sure, buddy. We're just reading a story before we head to bed ourselves. You can listen."

Sirius nodded. He and Regulus walked over to the chair that Andy had been occupying earlier in the evening. They managed to push it closer to the couch, since there was no much distance to cross. They lined it right up with the couch and then climbed in. The two boys settled in and closed their eyes as Andy began to speak again.

Later, when the adults would stumble upstairs to head to their beds, they would peek into the nursery, where the light was still on. They would find the five Black cousins snuggled on the couch and chair together. Cissy and Bella were still in the same position. Andy, too, had her head on Bella's shoulder and was still grasping her sister's hand. The boys were sleeping with their backs to each other, using the arms of the chair as pillows. The book was turned upside down on Andy's knee, split apart to keep place. Despite overcrowding, no covers or pillows, the cousins looked more at peace than they had ever looked in their lives together. The adults would turn off the lights and close the door, letting the cousins be.


End file.
